Around the world in finance news

ZIMBABWE telco Econet has launched a debit card to cut down reliance on banknotes. Meanwhile, Fiat’s Q2 profits were down by more than a half.

AAPJuly 31, 20149:28am

The Italian carmaker’s second-quarter profits dropped by more than a half.Source:AP

THE Australian dollar is lower after the release of strong US economic growth figures.

At 0630 AEST on Thursday, the local unit was trading at 93.30 US cents, down from 93.74 cents on Wednesday.

And the Australian share market looks set to open flat following a mixed performance on Wall Street after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates near zero and surprisingly strong second-quarter US economic growth data.

At 0645 AEST on Thursday, the September share price index futures contract was up one point at 5,579.

ELSEWHERE:

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve has stuck to its plan of holding its base interest rate near zero while steadily trimming its stimulus, despite a surprisingly strong second-quarter economic growth report.

WASHINGTON — A private survey shows that businesses hired at a healthy pace in July, though the job gains slowed from the previous month.

MOSCOW — Moscow has warned a new wave of Western sanctions would drive up European Union energy prices and said they would hurt the bloc’s economy as much as Russia.

NEW YORK — Standard & Poor’s has declared Argentina in “selective default” on its bonds on Wednesday, as the country passed the final deadline for making a $US539 million ($A583 million) payment on its restructured debt.

NEW YORK — A US judge has ordered Bank of America to pay a $US1.3 billion ($A1.4 billion) penalty for selling bad loans to mortgage finance firms Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac amid the housing crisis.

MILAN — Italy has agreed to sell a 35 per cent stake in its electricity grid to China’s state power company for at least 2.1 billion euros ($A3.0 billion) as part of its privatisation drive.

HARARE — Zimbabwe’s telecommunications giant Econet has launched an international debit card with Mastercard in a move expected to cut reliance on banknotes in the cash-strapped country.

NEW YORK — Twitter shares have surged in morning trade after the messaging platform eased investor concerns with a quarterly report showing strong user growth and robust revenues.

NEW YORK — Media and financial information group Thomson Reuters says its profit is unchanged from a year earlier amid a major reorganisation.

THE HAGUE — Dutch telecommunications firm KPN has reported a second-quarter net loss, attributed in part to a 700-million euro reduction in the value of shares it was acquiring in a German rival.

MILAN — Italian carmaker Fiat SpA, which controls Chrysler, says its second-quarter profits dropped by more than a half due to lower performance in North and Latin America.